How is Pelican Bus & Coach contributing to a more sustainable future for public transport across the UK?

The electrification of the UK’s public transport system is a key pillar of the country’s transition to net zero by 2050. The government has already banned the sale of new petrol and diesel-powered cars from 2030 and is consulting on a similar move for buses between 2025 and 2032.

Many transport operators are already making the switch to zero-emissions buses, recognising the benefits of electrifying their fleets. As well as cutting carbon emissions, introducing electric models also improves air quality, reduces noise pollution from combustion engines, and lowers vehicle running and maintenance costs ¹.

Users also enjoy a better experience, free from the noise, vibration and bumpy rides experienced on older diesel-powered buses. Because electric buses have near-silent motors, fewer moving parts and no clunky gearbox, they offer a much less jarring journey than conventional buses during the constant start-stopping that characterises city driving.

Pelican Bus & Coach, based near Leeds in Yorkshire, has been on a mission to transform bus travel in the UK and Ireland since 2013, when it became the UK’s exclusive importer and distributor of Yutong electric buses. Yutong was an easy choice: the China-based brand is the world’s biggest bus manufacturer and the top producer of fully electric buses by units sold ².

HSBC has supported Pelican’s purchases of Yutong vehicles, including 360 electric buses and coaches for delivery to customers across the UK and Ireland as of March 2023. The bank is also helping the company scale up its franchise in response to growing demand. A new £60 million green trade finance package – consisting of letters of credit and buyer loans – will help Pelican add another 200 to 300 electric buses to the UK public transport network over the next 12 months.

“We are proud of our long-term relationship with HSBC UK, as well as with Zhengzhou Yutong Bus, and are looking forward to seeing these buses on our roads.”

The new vehicles will consist primarily of electric single-decker 10 and 12-metre buses, along with a few electric coaches and airside buses. In 2023, Pelican plans to expand its portfolio of Yutong models with the introduction of an electric double-decker bus and a longer range high capacity three-axle electric coach for intercity coach services.

Many of the services operated by the new vehicles are in Scotland, including Glasgow, where Pelican notably supplied 55 electric buses and six electric coaches for the local transport operator to deploy at the COP26 climate conference in 2021. Services have also been confirmed in Aberdeen, Inverness, Edinburgh, Carmarthen, Leicester, Newport and Newcastle.

“Buses and coaches actually account for only about 2.5% of domestic transport emissions in the UK, while cars and taxis contribute over 55%. By making bus travel more quiet and comfortable through electrification, companies like Pelican will encourage more people to switch over from cars and taxis to buses,” says Rob King, Head of Sustainability at HSBC UK.

“A key pillar of the UK government’s vision to decarbonise transport is to invest billions of pounds to make bus travel cheaper, easier and more convenient, as well as to introduce more zero-emission buses. The private sector can also support the effort, with Pelican, an ambitious, family-owned business, showing how profit can align with principles,” adds Jamie McCullough, corporate relationship director at HSBC UK.

“This funding, secured through our dedicated HSBC UK green fund, enables Pelican to realise its growth plans and further the reach of greener public transport across the country.”